Community based participatory research (CBPR) was used to provide evidence on the specific nature and experiences of persons with disabilities and older people from their own perspectives in Tanzania, through the lens of social, political, economic and cultural inclusion. The aim was to strengthen efforts to provide services for and improve the lives of people living in the rural and urban settings of Nachingwea and Kibaha Urban Municipal Council. Twenty-nine peer researchers (nine persons with disabilities, 10 older people and 10 Tanzanian Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) members working in these communities) were involved in the study. A total of 106 stories were collected. Eight priority areas emerged and were chosen by peer researchers for further discussion in groups: access to education and quality learning; access to health services; issues fed back from NGOs; poverty relating to income and dependence; attitudes towards witchcraft and albinism; relationship difficulties and marriage breakdowns; sexual violence and gender issues; poor treatment from family

There are dozens of emerging interactive web services and applications, sometimes referred to as the ‘participatory’, ‘social’ or ‘readwrite’ web, but more commonly known as Web 2.0. Together, they are radically changing the ways we create, share, collaborate and publish digital information through the Internet. These new technical opportunities bring challenges as well as opportunities that we need to understand and grasp. Most of the themed articles are based on presentations made at the the international Web2forDev conference, 25-27 September 2007 at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) headquarters in Rome, Italy

This handbook aims to help workers in community based NGOs, working to increase demand for reproductive and child health services through increased awareness and advocacy, to develop their searching techniques when looking for information on the Internet. By knowing where to look for different types of information, how to find information on specific topics and for specific professional purposes; as well as by refining the search terms used, the relevance of the results can be improved and reduced to a manageable amount

This paper shows how information, communication, the media and ICTs are powerful agents of change, how they can give 'voice' to the poor and contribute to more sustainable development, but it also emphasises the need to support and strengthen communication processes used by poor and marginalised people who already face many barriers to receiving information, and to develop the skills and capacity of those people to make their own voices heard. It concludes by suggesting an agenda for action by policy makers, development experts, international organisations, non-governmental organisations and the private sector (including the media)

This paper considers the importance of listening to people's stories when working towards improving the lives and livelihoods of individuals and communities. "Stories are helping us learn more about the livelihoods of the fishers and farmers with whom we work in eastern India. We are engaged with these communities in processes and activities aimed at improving their lives and promoting changes in government policy and service delivery in aquaculture and fisheries. Stories are told in several languages by women and men who fish and farm, about their lives, their livelihoods and significant changes they have experienced. We also record stories as narrated to us by colleague-informants. The written and spoken word, photographs, drawings and films - all are used to document the stories of people’s lives, sometimes prompted by questions as simple as 'What do people talk about in the village?' Through the power of language, stories can be an entry point into livelihoods programming, monitoring and evaluation, conflict transformation and ultimately a way of giving life to a rights-based approach to development"

“This report evaluates the Angolan mine risk education activities carried out by Handicap International in the Huambo Province of Angola between November 2003 and May 2005. Its aim is to draw on lessons that can be applied to future mine risk education projects”

The research contained in this book is designed to foster discussion about the policies and actions that must be promoted for building an Internet culture in Latin America and the Caribbean based on the principles of social and cultural equity. The book also includes the results of development work on two information tools: the first is designed to facilitate mediation of the Internet's social impacts, and the second to develop a citizen habitus among children

The initiation, diffusion and adoption of the telecentre idea has been an enormously eclectic process, largely devoid of systematic research and planning. The approach has generally been one of pilot projects trying out models to see what works to achieve a diversity of objectives. In some cases the approach has been simply entrepreneurial, with enterprising business people exploring new opportunities for profit-making. A range of important issues is linked to the operation and success of telecentres. These include: sustainability, community relevance, government policy, information and communication technology (ICT), research, community partnerships and participation, telecentre objectives, and business planning. Often mentioned but largely undeveloped is the training associated with telecentre management, an issue that relates to all of the issues mentioned. While each of the issues deserves systematic analysis, this paper concentrates on sustainability and training. Based on data collected from various project documents this paper describes some of the strategies being used to sustain telecentres

A wide range of international case studies of grass-roots projects involved in communication for social change. Covers radio, theatre, video and the Internet and the participatory approaches they are employed in. Each case study gives a succinct overview which includes history, background, description of the media, outcomes and constraints

This guide presents a programmatic and goal-orientated approach to outreach activities. The premise of this approach is that evaluation is an integral part of programme development: planning and evaluating an outreach initiative is one and the same process, and asking the right questions at the beginning is essential for getting useful results at the end. The guide is practical in purpose, with checklists, worksheets and examples, but also heavily theory-based, offering a range of methodological possibilities and strategies. The guide should be useful to community organisations, libraries, clinics or other groups seeking to affect the capacity of individuals or communities to use health information resources and to address barriers to access, through simple or complex outreach projects. It is not specifically written for developing-country contexts

Discusses the potential benefits of using the Internet for rural / agricultural development. Contextualises the growth of the internet in development initiatives and addresses the potential of the internet in specific areas, eg community development, research/education, small and medium enterprise development, and news media. Finallly, identifies several areas of best practice to guide effective use of the internet. Recommends engaging intermediary agencies involved in (project support, research, extension, health etc) in internet initiatives, as well as stakeholders and intended beneficiaries. Warns against the widening information gap between haves and have-nots

Many resources related to community-based rehabilitation (CBR) are presented on this site, which is structured into the following sections: CBR websites, CBR-related websites, CBR books, CBR academic programs, CBR non-governmental organisations (NGOs). The site is maintained by a disabled person with post-graduate qualifications in rehabilitation who has worked in the disabilities field in the USA

Punto J constitutes an excellent example of the potential of innovative approaches to health issues through the effective use of ICT tools, and the implementations of new mechanisms for youth-to-youth online education on issues of sexuality, sexual and reproductive health, and HIV/AIDS prevention